Unit 8: Collections and Generic Containers

Arrays are not the only way Java groups data.

The Collections Framework provides structures whose contracts represent different needs. This unit concentrates on three ideas:

• List for ordered values that can grow or shrink;
• Set for membership and uniqueness;
• Map for key-to-value relationships.

The goal is not to tour every collection class. You will choose a structure by the operations the problem requires and justify the tradeoff.